Obama's OC Man is My Boy

Ben Escobedo is my college pal from Chapman University and a Morrissey freak. He's also the point man for Barack Obama's campaign in Orange County and the Inland Empire and just called me on his cell phone to rave about Obama's grassroots effort in OC.

"There are 18-year-olds who just had their birthday volunteering," he said. "People with full-time jobs who are taking a break to help out. It's amazing."

The conversation then turned to Escobedo's longtime friend, SanTana councilmember Claudia Alvarez, the woman who accepts enough money from developers to qualify as a streetwalker, except to call Alvarez that is an insult to the hos of the world. I told him he's the only person I know who likes her on a personal level; Escobedo just laughed.

And then the conversation went off the record. If it was anyone else, I'd spill the beans. In Ben's case, I just need to ply him with some tequila—will report tonight...

Gustavo Arellano is the editor of OC Weekly, author of the syndicated column "¡Ask a Mexican!", and Taco USA: How Mexican Food Conquered America. He started at the paper with an angry, fake letter to the editor and went from there—only in Anacrime!